Detoxification Basics: Why Your Body is Loaded with Toxins and What You Can Do About It
“We are a lot like Mother Earth,” Hope Faith, naturopathic physician, licensed midwife and colon therapist told me when I asked about her philosophy of detoxification. ”We are loading down the earth with toxins and we are starting to have problems.”
Comparing the overload, overuse and mistreatment of the earth to what we have done to our own bodies, Dr. Faith refers to the book, The Secrets of the Soil, which talks about the havoc that is wrecked on the earth from over processing the soil until it has become diseased.
“Our bodies,” she explains, “are becoming overwhelmed by our environment. There’s so much out there in the way of toxicity and pollution that we’re starting to see more degenerative and immune deficiency diseases. Chronic fatigue is rampant and of course there’s AIDS.”
Dr. Faith believes that now, more than ever, detoxification should be a vital part of every person’s health maintenance program. People would not be so vulnerable to disease if their systems weren’t so overloaded. Periodic detoxification helps take some of that load off, similar to taking regular vacations from work.
Toxins Weaken the Body
“The body,” Dr. Faith states, “has a normal detoxification process. It would cyclically detoxify on its own if we were living an easier life. But people are working 12 hours a day, grabbing food whenever they can and they don’t have time to slow down. So the body’s detoxification ability is suppressed.” This translates into more colds, flus, sinus infections and upper respiratory problems - just to name a few illnesses that start with toxic overload.
Because the system has nowhere to dump its toxins, it starts to overgrow bacteria, becomes more susceptible to circulating viruses and activates viruses that are already in the body.
The process of detoxification is very individualized. “If you take a person who’s really ill,” Dr. Faith reasons, “you can overwhelm their system by detoxifying too fast or too strong. You really need to know what condition a person’s health is in and what’s impacting their lives already.” She finds that the best route is to follow the lead of her patients. Many of them have educated themselves about their bodies and like to have control over their health.
The Pitfalls of Detoxification
When asked about the pitfalls of detoxification, Dr. Faith responded with a very common stumbling block encountered in today’s world. “In our society, we have this ‘push-it’ attitude that implies that more is better. What happens in detoxification is that people expect way too much from their bodies. They’re working a lot of hours, not eating great and all of a sudden they decide they want to do a cleansing program. I think they can weaken the system if they push too hard and they might quit because they become discouraged.”
Other common errors people make, says Faith, is to break their detoxification with the worst kinds of foods or go into it thinking that fasting is a magic pill. ”Most people are living a pretty fast-paced lifestyle and fasting takes a lot of preparation. I think if it’s not done in a gentle way, it doesn’t help the body.” Dr. Faith encourages an approach that includes resting, decreasing stress and fasting of another sort: from work!
Detox Diets: A Better Way to Go
“I think detoxification diets are more effective in this day and age,” Dr. Faith admits, “than fasting.” This would entail a diet that is very low in fat and would exclude animal products, dairy and fast food. “Food it would include is vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts, seeds, juices (especially live juices), herbal teas and cereal.”
She suggests a minimum of two weeks on this kind of diet, with modification if the person is having trouble adhering to the protocol. Staying on this diet for an entire month would be even more ideal, especially if someone is using things to cleanse the bowel and work on the liver to get an overall detoxification of the system.
There are benefits of extending a detoxification diet. “I’ve had people do that detox and find that it is really easy to move into a different kind of eating style because they stopped habits like coffee and sugar. They find that they can do without or they actually feel better without those things.”
Dr. Faith does caution those thinking about detoxifying to make sure that it is an appropriate time in their life for this process. ”There’s been many times,” she says, “when I started at detox and realized, hey, this is not a good time. I’m under too much stress, it’s too cold for me or I’m not ready mentally or spiritually right now. And so I wait until my body says it’s time.”
Colon Hydrotherapy
Are there options if you’re not ready to embark on a detoxification program, but would still like to cleanse the body? Dr. Faith feels that colon hydrotherapy can fill this need. As an example, she talks about an elderly patient with terribly arthritic knees to illustrate the benefits of colon hydrotherapy.
“I talked to this woman about diet and herbs. She wouldn’t take anything, she wouldn’t make any changes in her diet. But she had colonics every week and they were the only things that helped her to be able to walk up and down her stairs. When she didn’t have her colonics, she’d be really stiff and in a lot of pain.” Cleansing the system with colon hydrotherapy, Dr. Faith explains, is another way to create a positive impact on your road to optimal health.
A Spiritual Experience
As for her own experience with detoxification and colon hydrotherapy, Dr. Faith relates an element of spiritual uplifting. “I did an extensive detox and moved an incredible amount of stuff out of my colon. I felt lighter in my body. I felt alive and energized. I felt this incredible peace inside.”
After all, when your body is weighed down, and in survival mode trying to deal with all the toxins, it’s hard to be spiritually uplifted.
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